The Union and journal. [volume], May 11, 1860, Image 1

About The Union and journal. [volume] (Biddeford, Me.) 1858-1882

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LOUIS 0. COWAN,]
"ETERNAL HOSTILITY TO EVERY FORM OP OPPRESSION OVER THE MIND OR BODY OF MAN."—Jeffenon.
[EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR.
VOLUME XVI.
BIDPEFORD, ME., FRIDAY MORNING, MAY 11. 1860.
NUMBER 20.
Cjre ton it* Jmtntal
PUBLISHED EVERT FRIDAT IOUHS,
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TKRM8:
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JOB PRINTING OF ALL KINDS,
r Fuch aa Pamnhleta, Town R* porta. School R*>
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aolieited, aa every attention will ba paid to meat Uie
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JAMES T. CLEAVES. Printer.
IMrj.'
LAND AND SEA.
IT IATAIO TATLOS.
There are springs that rlM In the greenwood's heart.
Where IU leafy xlootns are cut \
Ana the t .ranches droop In the aolemn air,
Unstirred by the sweeping blast.
There are hilU that lie In the noontide calm.
On the lrp of the quiet earth i
And crowned with gold by the ripened grain.
Surround my place of birth.
Dearer are these to my pining heart.
Than the lieauty of the deep;
Where the moonlight fall* In a belt of gold.
On the wavee that heave In deep.
The rustling talk ef the clustered learee
That shade a well-known door,
la tweeter far than the booming found
Of the breaking wares before.
When night on the ocean sinks calmly down,
I climb the vessel's prow t
When the foam wreath glows with It* phosphor light.
Like a erowa on a sea-nymph's brow.
Above, thro' the lattica of rope aad spar.
The stars la their beauty burn.
And the spirit longs to nde Its beams.
And back to the land retura.
They say that the snnset Is brighter far,
When it sinks behind the sea ;
That the stars shine out with a softer Are,
Not thns they seem to me.
Dearer the flash of the crimson West,
Thro* tree* that my childhood knew.
Where the star of love wllh Its silver lamp.
Lights the homes of the tried and true.
PRESENTIMENT.
I drew It to Its full soft length.
That curl of glossy browa.
1 said, there Is no <|ueea on earth
With such a regal crown.
"Sea—give me this oae little lock.
The time may come," I said, _
"You cannot gire the lightest trees,
Without ita sllrer thread." —
Aha smiled, aad geatly shook her head,
Aad said—-Nay, let It sUy,
There la aa Oar that locks of mine
Will ever turn to grey."
How keen a pang one tboaghl may bring
Into our lightest mood,
I'd gire the world had she not spoke.
Or 1 not understood.
Agricultural.
Value of Marsh Muck to Light Land
Farmers.
Two important problems tho American
farmer has to solve, are how best to maintain
or increase the fertility of hi* soil; and how
best to mitigate the'disastrous effects of sum
ini-r drouths. The valuable report of Prof.
Johnson, on the nature and value of peat and
muck, afford* considerable aid in these in
quiries, and it calculated to bo of very great
Wnefit to those who aru in a position to prof*
it hv its teaching!.
llcre, away at the went, so far from the
seaboard that guano and other commercial
manures are seareelj available, and with few
cities and manufactories in our midst offord
ing extraneous supplies of matters suitable
for manure, it is sf vast importance to know
that we bars is o«r maishe* and fwamps an
inexhaustible ropjJr of cnriching and mois
ture iiu plying s»strrisl, which may bo had
for the trouble of digging.
In a paper on vagetahle physiology applied
to farm plants, published in the transaction*
of the ft tsoonsin State Agricultural Society,
lor 1M3, when speaking of the food of plant*
and whence it is dented, I directed attention
to tho value of tho muck of our marshes, ss
atworbed of orino and to compost with yard
nation ; that, unlike the comparatively bar
ren pest used for similar purposes in Great
Britain, from the time of Lord Meadowlmnk
down to tho preoent day, this muck, from
the luxuriou* vegetation it naturally produ
ces when relieved of stagnant water, is evi
dently rich in the food of plants; and owinz
to this, and to its power of absorbing and
retaining atmospheric ammonia, which tho
lighter soils of our oak openings probably
possess only to a very limited extent, I eon*
sidered that if it was applied eveu alone on
thcao soils it must prove beneficial.
A neighbor, who happened to ha some
thing of a politician as well as a farmer, had
on* of these public documents sent to him
(with Senator Wideawake's compliments, of
course,) and his son wisely resolted to put
thi* notion respecting th* utility of muck to
the tmt of experiment, lie accordingly
hauled two or tare* loads, and spread it on
a certain spot on a sandy field. The field
was subsequently sown to clover, and, th*
following summer proving dry, effects simi
lar to those witnessed by Mr. Johnson on th*
Cans of Mr. Pood, wars produced. Th* clo
ver was mostly burned up; bets and tbers
might b* seen a miserable plant struggling
for eaislsooe: while on the spot where th*
muck was spread—thanks to its moistur*
iatbibing rather than its ammonia absorbing
nature the clover was growing luxuiiantiy.
Th* old gentleman, ootmdcrixg this a sterol
practical lesson, took sera*] of hi* neighbors
to see the rault, and told them truly that
their marshes, which some of them were dis
posed to grumble so much about, were in re
ality, if proper advantage was taken of them,
the most valuable part of their farms.
Another neighbor who cut a ditch through
some bottom land, hauled the muck thrown
out on to a aatxlj field ; and tho corn pro
duced by that field, the year after, was al
lowed to be the beet in the neighborhood.
On the main road to our nearest city, I
noticed that a heavy dressing of marah muck
had been applied to aeveral acres of a sandy
field, bat fall, ao that aoon, like writing
with gy paum on clover,they who run may road.
1 am anxious, however, that iarmers gen
erally throughout the United States may
hare an opportunity of reading again and
again, b^ their firesides and at their leisure,
this report in ita entirety, and thus becomo
thoroughly convinced, by the reasons ao
clearly set forth hv Prof. Johnson, of tho
immense value of these muekdeposits. And
with that object in view, I desire to auggeat
—and tbia is the main object of iny writing
—whether it would not bo well to publish
th« report by itself, in a cheap form, and
then when published, to let it be known
through the medium of the advertising col
umns of all form journals, that auch a work
has been prepared for the fanner's use and
instruction, where it may be had, and at
what price?
I find no mention in your extracts, wheth
er, in the numerous samples of peat and
muck sent to Prof. Johnson, any were found
on examination to contain salts of iron inju
rious to vegetation. I have noticed an och
ery deposit in summer where water flows to
my marsh from the upland, and unmistaka
ble signs of the presence of iron in muck I
have dug and used ; but, from the results
produced, it must bo in some harmless state
of combination.
in J')ur iniennung memoir 01 .nr. imu-s,
it is said he thrice applied composts of j- at
and yard mnnun1 to nil land, and that the
first proved beneficial, tho huit injurious;
tho successive crops of turnips, barley und
clover being comparative failures; but when
great one, and the field afterward continued
very productive. Lessons in chemistry re
ceived at Edinburgh taught Mr. Bates that
tho peat contained a large proportion of the
oxide of iron, which destroyed the utable ma
nure and did the harm, and that lirno con
verted this into a beneficial manure.
Is this correctly stated ? There are two
oxides of iron usually met with in soils.—
The fir»t, or protoxide, is considered injuri
ous to plants, and chemUts tell us thut this
Mlt rapidly alworbs oxygen when exposed to
air, and thus becomes converted into the sec
oud, or peroxide, which is held to be harm
less, or even beneficial; for it is Kiid to have
the power, in common with clay and decayed
vegetable matter, of absorbing ammonia, and
returning it for the use of plants. There are
very few moro naturally fertile arable soils
than thane form»d by the disintegration and
decay of the new red sandstones, and their
red color is considered to bo owing to the
pn-sence of iron. Of soils remarkable for
their fertility, analysed bjSn*ot»ge| and quo
t<-d l.j Liebig, one which had produced b"uu
tilul crops for ICO years, without being ma
nured or allowed to lie fallow, contained 65
per cent of peroxide of iron ; and the surface
soil of a field in Belgium, distinguished for
its fertility, afforded S.31 per cent, of perox
ide and protoxide of iron. Besidce these,
there is another salt—the sulphute of iron,
the green vitriol ol commerce—which exer
cises a decidedly poisonous influenco on
plant*. This is frequently met with in Brit
ish peat bogs ; and lime effectually neutral
ises this salt and deprives it of its injurious
action.
It sometimes occurs in soils other than
Ct. Snrengel mentions a case where *iin
i and lucerne could not bo grown success
ively beyond two or three years, and tho
subsoil was found to contain upwards of one
I per cent, of sulphate of iron, which was the
cause of these deep-rooted plants perishmg.
While in Edinburgh, a friend in Lancashire
sent me a sample of soil from a part of his
garden whero nothing could be persuaded
to j^row satisfactorily, and peas, when sown
in it, perished witnout vegetating. This
soil was so largely saturated with sulphate of
iron that its presence was sufficiently obvi
ous to tho sense of smell immediately the box
containing tho soil was opened. Now lime
is known to have a very beneficial effect if
mixed with beat, or applied to soils contain
ing sulphate of iron. Limo decomposes this
suit. Tho sulphuric acid combines with the
lima, forming sulphate of lime, or gypsum,
which is useful to many plants, and protox
ide of iron remains, which, by exposure to
air, as above stated, rapidly absorbs another
equivalent of oxygen, aud is changed into
the harmless peroxide.—Corresponded of
Genesee Farmer.
Plant Protootor*.
Frw articles about a garden aro more con
venient tliun those ainiplo affairs, of which
an ordinary hand at all u«d to the saw and
hammer, could make in one wet day proba
bly all that would be rsaaired. Wo have
ullr. '.. d to them before. l'hey aro made as
follow* :
' Oat op a thrM^fourth Inch plank, at leant
a foot wide, into length* of twelve or fifteen
inchca. Thcee aro the corns or tope which
are to screen your plant* from sun and frost,
liaise them above the plant* you wish to
protect, by nailing them at each end to a
narrower bit of plank, say six to nine inches
io width, and o( the same length m tho
width uf the oovcr. When jou tear a frost,
pat these over the hills of beans, cucumber*,
etc., it will protect them perfectly. If you
wish to transplant your cabhages, or any
thing in your flower garden, do not wait for
a wason, but do it any day, just at night, in
fresh dug nil, giving the roots a good wa
tering. Cover them daily with the protect
ors, taking them off at night that they may
be freshened with tfce dew. Alter a couple
of day* it will be sufficient to stand the pro
tector on edge on the south tide of the plants
to keep offlhe mid-day sun. In three or
four aaye the roots will be established.—
Another use for them is, when the weather
is so dry that hills of melons, squashes, etc.,
will not come up. Water the hills with a
fine toss watering pot, and lay the protector
t the hills, and the young seedlings will
soon make their appearance. When above
ground take off the protector and let the
them at night, and in a day
or two dispense with it entirely. Tbey aro
excellent, also, to cover over toe patches of
newly planted flower bs<k, can^n^em to
come up much sooner. Remove them when
neosssary to admit mild ratos, and entirely
when the plants appear. Try afawof them
and you will And they are far better »K»t.
tower pots, which ars generally ossd tor
these purposes, excelling ia eheapoea, con
venieooo and utility.—Soidktm FitU.
CHARCOAL.
Charcoal absorbs niootj times its volume
of ammoni&ral pan, which maj be again sep
arated by moistening it with water. It is
by virtue of this power that the roots of
plants are supplied in charcoal exactly as in
humus, with an atmosphore of carbonic acid
and air, which is renewed as quickly as it is
abstracted. Charcoal has a physical as well
as a chemical effect on soils, which is deci
dedly useful. It renders them, as far as it
is present, light and friable, and gives addi
tional warmth to them by its color, and re
tains readily the rays of the son during the
day. Wherever charcoal has been applied,
rust never affects the growth of wheat.
JJfallaneoHS.
JONES AND JOHNSON.
BT MAKIA n. CTSHMAW.
William Johnson and Edwin Jones were
both of them farmers, and they were also
near neighbors. Their farms were beautiful
ly situated ; the soil naturally productive.—
bo far thcro wus not a particle of difference
between the two places. Yet they wore a
very different asncct. Johnson's buildings
looked nice ana tidy. His dooryurd was
clean, his house neatly painted, his windows
whole. His bnrn nnd out-buildings were
snug and comfortable, his orchard looked
thrifty, and tho trees were carefully dressed.
Now Mr. Jones had no more of a family to
support than his neighbor, yet tho aspect of
his nouso and farm were very different. Old
rubbish wus kicking around in the yard, that
should have Itoen in less unsightly places ;
his house looked weather-beaten and ncgloc
ted ; rags were seen in spots where panes of
class were expected to be found : there were
. r. l— »i u ♦>,«
larj^i imio hi um m»iu ........
wimls of heaven had freo course. liit ap
ple trees wero disfigured by old bark and
dead limta ; in iihort everything evened to
wear a look of dilapidation and neglcct.—
Edwin Jones was a hard working man, yet
everything was at loose ends with him, and
he often caught himself wondering how it
was that his neighbor Johnson kept along so
smoothly and quiet, yet had everything in
perfect order. • • •
Ono rainy day in tig fall, after harvesting
was over, Johnson wns at work in his tool
chamhcr when his neighltor Jones entered.
•'Johnson," said the latter after ho had
watched his neighbor's piano a few moments,
"how much did that sled of youra cost? I
have got to have one this winter."
"Oh, that cost mo nothing; I made that
myself. I got out the timber last winter, so
that matter's deposed of; and I foci proud
of it too. It's my first attempt."
"Well, neighbor Johnson, 1 don't see how
in tho world you get along so. Your farm
don't produco any more than mine does, and
I don't believe you work as hard as I do.—
Your wife don't mako any better butter than
mine; your sheep don't grow any better
wool. "You raise more fruit, to be sure."
"I have not so many tun* as you."
"No, hut the fruit is of a better quality,
and finds a ready market."
"Yes, because I have taken pains to obtain
the best grafts. My trees were the samo as
yours when we started. My co*s givo more
milk than yours do in winter, for they have
a warmer burn. 1 raise more pork than you
do, because my pens are tight and comforta
ble, and so on.
"And I suppose you are laying up mon
ey?" muttered Jones with a crest fallen
look.
"Certainly I am—about $200 a ^roar."
"So much !" exclaimed Jones with a look
of surprise; "why, I can't lay una single
cent; in fact am running behind."
"Let mo tellyou tho secret,"said Johnson,
in tho kindest and most neighborly way.—
"Last summer I saw you buy two now rakes
and two pitchforks; now, bow much did
they all cost you?"
"Let's boo—two dollars and a half."
"Well, my fork handle got broko last win
ter, so did some of my rakes. I brought
them right up hero, anil when at leisure lust
fixed them up. There was so much saved.—
Now you havo nothing at all to do to-day."
"No, indeod! it rains too hard."
"Hut I am at work making my apnlo box*
es ; how are you going to get yours? '
"(irainison makes them for tuo, and I am
to givo him a harrel of applus."
"Which is as good as two dollars. Now
if tou hire as good a sled as mine made, it
will cost you at least twelve dollars. You
see how these littlo things count up."
"And all this comes of your having tools
to work with," returned Jones, whoso eyes
were beginning to open.
"Yes, neighbor."
"Well, if I had tools I might save a good
manj sums in tne course 01 ujvur, uui i n«
er have the money to spare for thorn. Why
these Vro tools oi vourn must coat mor'n fif
ty dollar*."
"Just about that."
••Thon I'm mighty afraid I shall have to
scropo alone with borrowed tojls. 1 shall
never havo tnat sum to spore."
"You don't understand. Let me explain
the secret. 1 should never have gone with a
fifty dollar bill and bought these things. I
have produced one at a time with mj grog
and tobacco money."
"Grog and tobacco monoj!" repeated Jonee
with a look of blank surprise.
"Yes,"snid Johnson with a smile. "Now
I am going to give vou a lecture. I am go
ing to give you the benefit of mj ezncrience.
The first year I began on a (arm I usjd to
have spirits by me, and every now and then
take a drink to keen up my strength, I said
to myself. In the long, warm day*, in hay
ing and harvesting the bottle used to be pat
ronized liberally. But I finally began to see
that it was growing hard for me to resist;
and so after deliberating upon the subject I
came to the conclusion tnat ram and tobac
co did me no good, and might do much evil,
and I would leavo them off, and 1 did. So I
commenced laying up the money they cost
me. I saw how much might be saved if I
could do the work myself, I had been obliged
to nay for, and so I began buying such tools
as 1 thought would come bandy. At the end
of the first year I found I bad quite a collec
tion, and it nad all come from mon*y 1 might
otherwise drank and. smoked up, and I felt
healthier and happier than the year before.
I knew I had laid the foundation for future
good. Time pari on; my grog and tobao
co money kept coming in. It was now a
hammer, then a saw, then an auger, and
another plane, a bit-stock, Ac., tul I have
now an exoollsnt stock of tools; and they are
not only a source of great woflt, but solid
comfort into the bargain. I believe friend
Jones, in giving up my grot and tobacco I
have been a great gaioer. Now, do you not
think you would do M well without it?"
"Jmumou," Mid Jooci, al length, after %
protracted ailenoe, "I wish you had told mo
of thia long ago."
"I was afraid it might offend you; it is a
delicate matter at belt."
"I know it, bat Edwin Joneria not th«
man to be offended with a neighbor for friend
ly advice."
"Well," mid Johnson, with an extreme
look of gratification, "it's never too late to
mend, and if too got a pineh where fifty or
a hundred dollars will be of uso to jou, oome
to me."
Mr. Jonee thanked his friond with a sus
picious moisture shining in his eje, and
shortly after took his leave. The very next
time he went to town, instead of refilling bis
brown jug and empty box, he brneght home
a new auger, and a proud and happy roan
was he at work with his own tools. Time
passed away, and ho soon found himself the.
owner of quite a little lot of imploocnts.—
This thing operated in many ways fop good.
Now that be bad the ability to fix «p his
buildings without borrowing tools, he began
to tako prido in doing it. lie roset his win
dows, roofed his boe house, built now pie
pons, tightened his barn, and in rainv weatn
cr was never without a pleasant and'profita
ble employment. His cows do not break
through the barn floor now, and they give
as much milk, his bees make as much nonoy,
his troea yield as good apples as his neighbor
Johnson's do, and nil this is because he stop
ped his grog and tobacoo expenditures,
bought his tools, and left off depending upon
his neighbors, and so he is now a nappy,
thriving and contented farmer.
REPORT OP COMMISSIONERS
APPOINTED TO 8KTTLK WITH TOT SURETIES OP
BKNJ. D. PICK, LATK TREASURES OP JUI.VX.
To the Governor and Council:
•> ' ' -» _ r> 1— I \r u
Commissioners " with authority to adjust
with the Sureties of B. D. Peck, late State
Treasurer, their liabilities on said Peek's of
ficial bonds, with full power to settle and
apportion the same on such terms as shall l>o
just and equitable; and upon adjustment by
said sureties to dischargo them."
In obedience to tho duty thus enjoined, the
Commimioners met at tho Treasury offico in
Augusta on tho 10th inst.; and tho Sureties
of 1K59 appeared before them and had a
hearing from day to day until an adjustment
of their liabilities was effected, tho modo of
payment agreed upon, and a discharge for
mally entered upon their Bond. Tho Com
missioners now submit tho following Rc]>ort
of their proceedings and conclusions:
By the Report of tho Investigating Com
mittee, the amount apportioned to the Sure
ties of 1859 was $02,503.71, and to the
Sureties of 1858, $14,352.89. That tho ac
ceptance of this Report by tho Legislature
was not to ho oonsidorou a definite appor
tionment of tho liabilities, is sufficiently evi
dent from tho language of tho Resolvo above
(juoted—in which express authority is con
ferred upon tho undersigned to " settle and
abortion the liabilities on such terms as shall
be just and editable." Tho undersigned
havo therefore felt fully warranted in making
such changes in tho respective liabilities of
the Sureties of 185R ana 1859 as seemed to
them to bo demanded by tho application of
legal principles which, oy tho ocet counsel
they can obtain, must govern in tho strict
settlement of tho vnrious questions involved.
Tho Invostigating Committoo very naturally
assumed that tho period of liability on tho
purt of tho Sureties was coterminous with
the fiscal year of tho Stato, and hcnco in tho
division mado in their Report, tho Sureties of
1858 are held to bo responsihlo only for that
part of tho defalcation which actually and
jnlpably occurred in that year, and previous
to the Legislative inspection of tho Treasur
< "
Sureties of the one year were discharged as
soon as tho accounts of tho Treasurer were
declared to bo correct, and that the Bond of
the succeeding year, subsequently filed, in
cluded all liabilities thereafter occurring.—
Such a construction has been the one popu
larly ucccpted in the past, and tho apprehen
sion of its correctness was so general, that
tho Investigating Committee adopted it with
out special scrutiny as tho basis of thoir con
clusions. Tho more rigid examination, how
ever, which the undersigned havo felt called
upon to make, touching this particular point,
has convinced them that tho Sureties or 1859
did not bocomo responsible for any of tho
Treasurer's doiqgs until their Bond was ap
proved by tho Legislature, and that up to
tho saino 'date, tho Sureties of 1858 are hold
on. Tho language of the Constitution would
sccin to Im entirely conclusive so far as tho
first point is involved—vis: as to tho time
when the liability of tho Sureties of 1859
• 1 A ..i V Yl k T? «iL
COOIUIUIIWU* OW» Aiki v I a cmd * vu«««i|
is om follows:
" The Treasurer shall, bcforo entering up
44 on tlio dutini of his office, givo bond to the
44 State with Sureties, to tho satisfaction ol
44 the Legislature, for the faithful discliarjo
44 of hi« trust."
It in quite manifest, therefore, that Mr.
Pock did not enter 44 on the duties of his of'
fice," under and bv virtuo of his election of
1859, until ho had given a Bond 44 to the sat'
is/action of the Legislature," which satisfac
tion could only Co indicated by an explicit
approval oi his Bond ; and this approval, as
amicara by tho Logiflative records, was not
ptlocted until tho 4th day of February.—
From and after that date, therefore, ana not
until then, tho Sureties of W59 became lia
ble for the acta and doeds of the Treasurer.
It is equally manifest that up to that dato
the Sureties of 1858 aro responsible to the
Stato. Tho con^ion of the Bond of that
year (which is a prociso copy of the Bonds
given for a long ecrico of years previous, and
cxactly similar also to the Bona of 1859) is,
amone other requirements, that the said
Benj. D. Peck 44shall well and truly pay to
his suocossor in office, or to any other person
that may be appointed by the Legislature to
receive the same, all such sum or sums of
money, books, property and appurtenances
as upon auch settlement of his accounts, or
otherwise, shall be found due and payable
from him or his agents or servants to this
State, as Treasurer aforesaid." It thus bo*
comes evident that the SuretiM of 1858 were
bound not only to see that Mr. Pock's ao
oounta were oorrect at the annual Legislative
settlement, but also that tne moneys of the
State were actually fa the Treasury when hia
succesMr took possession of tbs office. That
Mr. Peek was his own successor, does not
alter the matter in the least, for, officially
considered, "B. D. Peck of 1858," 44B. D.
Peck of 1859," were essentially distinct
just as much so aa any other two ooneecutive
incumbents of tho Treasury office. And aa
no new Treasurer dose or can "enter upon tho
duties of his offioe" until hia Bond is ap
proved by the Legislature, ao Beoj. D. Peek,
as already affirmed, did not and could not
"«ter upon tho dutiea of hia office" under
hia election of 1859, until hie Bowl was ap
proved on (ho 4th day of Vfctauiy. The
Treasurer is not elected for tho prociso period
of a year, though such is a very general im
pression. Tho Constitution simply doclaros
that "the Treasurer shall bo electod annual
ly, at the first session of tho Legislature
and hence an election at any time during
that session is plainly, within the require
ments of this provision ; and most obviously
the Treasurer of the year prooeding, remains
in office till such election is effected and his
successor qualified. Any other construction
'would involve an intermediate period during
which the funds of the State would be loft
to no responsible keeper.
If these positions bo oorrect, and the Com
missi oner* are fully persuaded that they are,
it ii'ovident that all moneys unlawfully re
moved, by Mr. Peck, from tho Treasury, be
tween tho 1st af January and the 4th of
Febrtaoy, 1859, must be made good by the
Sureties of 1858; as thair responsibility is
explicitly doclared in their Bona to extend to
tho date at which his suooensor enters upon
the duties of his office. Upon a careful ex
amination of the books of the Treasury De
partment, and a comparison of the samo
with tho accounts of the various Banks in
which tho Treasurer had dealings, it appears
that between the dates named tho sum of
$22,136.99 was drawn from tho Treasury for
other than State uses, and all tho dcficit cre
ated by these acts tho undersigned consider
as falling within tho liability of the Sureties
of 1858. Should this amount bo deducted
from tho $02,563.71 for which the Sureties
of 1859 were alleged to bo liable in tho lie
port of tho Investigating Committee, their
liability would bo reduced to the sum of
$40,420.72,
It has also been shown to tho satisfaction
of the Commissioners, that an official check
for $2000 was deposited bv Mr. Peck at tho
Augusta Bank during tho last days of 1858,
and that this amount went to covcr his defi
ciency of that year, just as did tho $10,200
worth of chocks discounted at other Banks
and described at length in tno Report of tho
Investigating Committee. This sum is of
courso to l>o deducted from the amount
claimed of tho Sureties of 1859, and is to bo
recovered from tho Sureties of 1858. It bo
longs to precisely tho same cluss that tho oth
ers do, and is to bo trcatod in tho samo man
ner. It also appears that the tax of tho
town of Paris, amounting to $841,31, was
recoivod by Mr. Peck, and that ho did not
give credit therefor at the proper timo—with
holding it just as ho did tho taxes of West
brook, Yarmouth and other towns, and thus
concealing Ills ciciiciency 01 injn in mo muuu
fully sot forth in tilf Kcport of tho Invest i
gating Committee. Them two Hums, (tho
Augusta Bank check and the Paris tax)
amounting together to $2,841.31, must ho
further subtracted from tho liability of tho
Sureties of 1859 and added to tho sum for
which the Sureties of 1858 aro responsible.
Doducting it then from tho $40,420.72alwvo
found, and there will remain as the undoubt
ed liability of tho Sureties of 1859 tho sum
of $37,585.41.
Of tho sum of $22,130.99 removed from
tho Treasury between January 1 and Febru
ary 4, 1859, thcro is no positivo and conclu
sive ovidenco that any part was us»\l to pajr
tho obligations incurred by Mr. Peek offi
cially, when ho was raising money in order
to mako his accounts good at tho Legislative
inspection. Thcro is, however, sorno infer
ential proof, amounting to a strong presump
tion, tliat $4,038.44 of tho gross sum was
thus used, and tho result of this, if estab
lished beyond doubt or cavil, would bo to in
crease tho liability of tho Sureties of 1859,
and diminish that of the Sureties of 1858
by precisely this amount—inasmuch as to
reckon it all against tho latter might bo du
plicating tho payment of tho same specific
sums. Tho case, however, is not ono of such
clear and imperative obligation on tho part
of the Sureties of 1859 as to warrant the
Commissioners in oxacting its payment, and
us they aro procooding under a Logislativo
Resolve which directs them tosettlo with tho
Suretios 'in a just and equitablo manner,'
they feel well persuaded that both justice and
equity will bo J>ost subserved by declining to
enforce tlio payment of that sum from tho
Sureties of 1859. Tho admitted, unques
tioned, and iudisputahlo liability of tliose
Suretios is £37,5n5.41. When any thing
beyond this is demanded, doubts and cavils
and disputes arise such as tho Commissioners
conceivo it highly dcsirablo to avoid.
There is another consideration which enti
tles tho Sureties of 1859 to somo leniency at
tho hands of the State, in adjusting their li
ability. It is the fact that nrivato notes and
drafts to tho amount of $14,900, negotiated
by Mr. Pock lor tho acknowledged purpose
of oonoealing his deficiency of 1858, were
nevertheless all paid out of the Treasury
funds in the spring of 1859. Tho sureties of
1859 havo therefore to assume this amount,
which was a virtual deficit in 1858, but
which did not become so technically and lo
gally till 1859. Whilo this presents no
ground for the evasion of propor and legal
responsibility, it certainly does suggest the
most cogent reasons for a settlement on tho
tiasis of equity and liberality. Undor these
circumstances, whilo tho undersigned havo
not felt authorised to remit tho payment of
tho deficit caused in 1859 by tho notes nego
tiated in 1858, Hey have felt that it would
bo oppressive to insist on the last dollar by
exacting this sum of $4,038.44 from the
Sureties of 1859, when their liability there
for is in any event a matter of serious doubt.
When tho Commissioners had succeoded in
•• •• • •••- ' -« « # lOKA
najUHing WlO liauuuj UI mo uuickiwui «wv|
and had found that the amount due from
them wu $37,5&5.41, they rewired a prop
osition from thorn Sureties to pay $3/ ,000
to tho Stato, and rocoire a discharge from
all further liabilitj on their Bond. The
terms proposed were $7,000 Id cash, and
$10,000 per year for three years in notes of
Samuel F. llersey and Walter Brown, satis
factorily secured bj mortgngo on real estate.
The undersigned accepted the offer, and
Messrs. Corns toe k, Porter and Jewett were
appointed a Sub-Committee to proceed to
Bangor and examine the real estate proposed
to be mortgagod, and ascertain if ft consti
tuted sufficient soourity to insure the prompt
payment of the notes to which it is collate
ral. The Sub-Committee devoted some three
days to the task assigned them, and bocamo
m turfed that the soeurit/ was ample for the
protection of the State, and at once had the
mortgages executed. Upon this fact being
certified, the notes and mortgages formally
delivered, and $7,000 in eash paid, accord
ing to agreement, the undersigned, bj virtu*
of the authority vested in them, discharged
the Sureties of 1859 from all future or fur
ther liabilitj to the State on their Bond.—
The Commissioners foal thai It is bat simple
justice to acknowledge the prompt and ear
nest purpose so uniformly manifested br these
Sureties to meet all Ism and equitable de
mands against then. They have mast bos*
orablj discharged their obligations to the
Stats, and have set an example worthy of all
commendation.
The amount of the deficiency tfa> ht re
covered it as follows;
Mechanic* Bank,
Noal Dow,
Sureties ot 1859.
$1,100
8,500
37,000
$40,000
Allowing for tho odd mm, $581.41, not
exacted from the sureties of 1859, and alao
for $100 correction made in the General De
ficiency account on ths Tmnnt'i books,
and the amount liill due to the State will bo
found to be $46,738.58. Of tbia grow sum
the Legislature selected its own remedy for
the recovery of $7,507.39 by the paasago of
the following Reaolre:
HTATE OP Minn.
usolti uumo to csktadc demands or tuk
■TAR.
Resolved, That tho Governor and Council
be directed to aooent the proposition made
by Neal Dow in hia letter to the Inrestiga
tine Committee, as detailed Id their Report,
ana take measure* at onoe la have th« prop
osition carried into effect. That tha Gonsr
nor and Council be directed to demand pay
ment by John Wyman and Walter Brown
of the amounts shown by the Report of
said Committee to bo duo from thorn to the
State, and if not jwid to take measure* for
the collection thereof.
[Approved March 20,1800.]
The Sureties of 1858 were found by the
licpon UI V11U IIJTISU^UUIIK VAJIUUllticv IV uv
liaulo for tho aum of $14,352.89. A deduc
tion of $100 || to be made from thia amount
by reason oT an error in regard to tha tax of
the town of Gray, tho correction of which
reduces tho total dcficit of tho late Treasurer
to $93,023.99. To tho $14,252.89, for
which tho Sureties of 1858 would still be
liable on tho baaia of the Report of the In
vestigating Committee, there must be added,
in the first instance, tho Augusta Bank chock
and the Pari* tax before referred to, amount
ing to $2,841.31, and thua increasing theii
liability to $17,094.20. And in addition to
thia amount tho Commissioners, as alreadj
stated, consider tho sureties of 1858 rcsnon
Bible for all moneys misappropriated by Mr.
Pock between January I and February 4,
1859. Tho gross amount thus misappropri
ated was $22 130.99, which added to the
$17,094.20, sums up $39,231.19 as the not
tiblt ultimate liability of the Sureties of 1858.
Further investigation and the examination of
somo bank bool(a which have not boen before
tho Commissioners, may prove that the $4,
038.44 before referred to, was undoubtedly
in payment of checks already included in the
sum for which they are held accountable.—
In that event tho Sureties of 1858 will be
entitled to a reduction to that amount, and
thp sum which will bo thon demanded of
them is $35,192.75. It is certainly better
that tho State should lose the $4,038.44 thun
that it should be paid by any one from whom
it is not equitably and indisputably duo.—
Tho undersigned havo already shown good
reasons why the Sureties for 1859 should not
l>o compelled to pay this sum, and unlem fu
ture investigation shall clcarlv provo it to bo
duo from tho Sureties of 1858, it mu»t Iw a
loss to tho Stato. One-half of tho defalca
tion is already mado up, and if the Stato
shall csoapo with tho loss of only sotno four
thousand dollars, as now sowns probablo and
hopeful, it may ho accounted tho ltost of for
tuno. Tho Sureticn of 1858 are amply ablo
to respond to their liabilities, and the State
may bo considered as socuro against any fur
ther ultimate loss than tho comparatively
trifling sum just stated. What particular
courso tho Sureties of 1858 design to take,
tho undersigned are not able to state,inasmuch
as they havo not appeared before tho Com
missioners, cither in person or by attornoy,
though requested to Jo so by special notifica
tion. Tho Commissioners havo been ready
and willing to adjust tho amount to ho paid
according to tho standard of justice and equi
ty, and in the ahscnco of all prepositions
from thoso Sureties, thoy havo resolved upon
tho following courso:—Tho Commissioners
will hold an adjourned session at tho Treas
ury office, on tho 20th of Juno, for tho pur
Soso of aflbrding a full opportunity to those
ureties to make a fair and equitable adjust
ment of their liability. Should no such ad
justment bo effected at that time, it will be
tho duty of the undersigned, in accordance
with the Resolve under which they are act
ing, to fix tho "terms and stipulations" of
payment; aftor which the Sureties will be
allowed sixty days to comply with tho samo.
In the event of their failing to do ao, the
measures to bo subsequently pursued are left
by the Resolve with tho Governor and Coun
cil.
All wnicn u roupccwuuy suumuuxj.
J. U. BLAINE, *1
GEORGE K.JEWETT,
FREDERICK ROBIE,
JAMES M.STONE, >Co*.,Ac.
ROWLAND FISHER,
JOSEPH PORTER,
GEO. COMSTOCK,
Tuutmr Omci,
Augusta, April 25, 18G0
• 1
MOTS.
Ths following correspondence in pertinent
to tho foregoing Report, and is acoonlinglj
submitted in connection therewith :
Tmiasi rt Ornc*, )
Augusta, April 12,1860. J
Hon. J. II. Druminond,
Attornej General:
Dear SirI are instructed by the com
missioners appointed to settle with the sure
ties of B. D. Peck to submit to jou the fol
lowing statement and ouestiun, and to solicit
an answer at tout sarlW convenience.
The bond of Benj. D. Peek, for his laat
term m Treasurer, waa approved by the Leg
islature on tho 4th day of February, 1859—•
he having been elected on tho 13th of the
preceding month—
When did the liability of bis Sureties for
1859 commence ? *
Whon did the liability of bis Sureties for
1858 terminate?
Very truly yours,* J. G. Buwt
WarnriLti, April 18, 1800.
James G. Blaine, Esq.,
Chairman Cornm'm, Ac.
Dear SirYour note of April 12 was
July received.
Without entering at all my reasons there.
Tor, I submit the following answers to the
questions contained in your note.
1. The liability of tbe Sureties on the
Bond of 1859 commenced February 4,1859,
ind they are not reliable for any aet of the
treasurer previous to that date.
1. The liability of the Sureties on tbe
bond of 1858 conunoed for all the acts, 4c..
if tbe Treasurer an til February 4,1859, and
they must aoeoont for all monies reoeived by
kiss opto that data.
fours very truly, Josua H. Daemon.
Tbe following reoeipt shows tbe payment
into tbe Ttmmuj «f tbe mooer Motived from
ioe Sureties aad tbe delivery or tbsssourlUes
to the Treasurer:
STATE OF MAINE.
Tuascby Omci, I
Augusta, April 23, 1800. J
I hereby certify that ths Commissioners ap.
pointed by the legislature to eettle with the
Sureties of B. D. Peek, Treasurer of Maine for
the year 1890, lure depoaited In this office three
notea of 03000 each, dated April 33, 1800,
signed by Walter Brown, and 8amuel F Iler
eey, Surety, and payable to Nathan Dane,
Treasurer, or hie atpoceeore In office, aa follows,
▼lis
85000 on the first day of September. 1801.
85000 on the first day of September, 1803.
•9000 on the first day of September, 1803.
Alao, three notee of 93000 each, dated April
23, 1800, signed by Samuel F. Herser, and
Walter Brown aa eurety, and payable to Na
than Dane, Treasurer, or his successors in of
fice, aa follows, vis: *
63000 on the first day of September, 1861.
83000 on the first day of September, 1802.*
83000 on the first day of September, 1803.
Also, mortgagee of oertaln real estate liven as
security for we payment or u» afeuve deeiuttiwa
notea.
I also certify that the said Commissioners
have paid into this office seven thousand dollars
In casn.
NATHAN DANE, State Treasurer.
Our at Mechanical Fkat.—Recently, in Chi
cago, a whole block of buildings, weighing 38
000 tons, was raised four feet eight inches, by
6000 screws. The block extended 320 (set. A
Chicago paper aays"The block comprises
thirteen first cIass stores, and a large, double
marble structure, the Marine Bank building.—
lu aub-diviaiona are a five story marble front
block of three stores; a four story block of
three storce, a second four atory block of three
stores, and a five story block or four stores, at
the corner of Clark street—these all presenting
an unbroken front, in the heart of our city, and
filled w.th occupant*. It preeents some or the
best retail establishments in the city, and some
of the heaviest stocks of drugs, dry goods, etc.
Its upper stories are full of offices, and contain
millinery rooms, printing eetablianmenta, bind
eries, etc. eto., and yet, so admirably has ths
work been conducted, the ceaseless daily tideof
pedestrians has not been impeded, but rather
increased, from the novelty of the sight, and
the merchants and others even speak of an im
proved trade, though they will welcome the
completion of the work none the leas. This ab
sence from annoyance to the merchants and the
publio is due to the skill with which tbecontrac
tors have hung the sidewalks to The block Itself
and carried up the same with the riss of the
buildiog. The block has been raised four fret
eight inches, the required height, in five days,
ending with Fndav last, and the masons are
now busy putting in the permanent supporters.
Tho entire work will occupy about four weeks.
So carefully has it been done that not a pane
of glana has been broken nor a crack in muon
ry ap]>eared The internal order of the block
has prevailed undisturbed. The contraot was
taken not jointly, but so carried out by the
several firms of lirown A Hollingsworth, Full
man and Moore, and Kly k Smith, and for an
aggregate price of 817.000. That sum will be
nearly doubled by the entire improvements
contemplated on the block. The process of
raising, us indicated abotc, is bv the screw, at
six thousand of which three inches in diameter
and of "thrte-eightht thrtaJ." six hundred
workmen have been employed, each man in
chnrgouf from eight to ten screws. A eompleto
system of aignal^Praakept in ojteration, and bv
three the workmen paaaed, each through his
series, giving each screw ono quarter turn,
then returning to repeat tho same."
New Statbi.—The bill for the admission of
Kansas under tht Wyandott Constitution, which
has passed the House, reduces the length of ths
Territory to 400 miles troin 700 miles, which U
comprised under the Lccompton Constitution.
The New York Herald says:
"Three hundred miles of the western end art
cut off. comprehending the gold mines of tho
I'ike'a Peak country—a district which at this
day number* thirty thousand white population,
and which, by the end of another year, may be
increased to sixty thousand, and in two years'
time to one hundred thousand The result,
therefore, will he the erection of two free Hiatee
out of Kansas Territory instead of one.* It so
happens, too, that this bill for the division of
Kansas into two freo States is really demanded
by the gcograpica! character of the country.—
Between the settled portions of Eastern Kansas
and the Pike's Peak gold region, there is a wide
interval of about four hundred miles, or what
is sometimes called 'the great American <lreert'
—an uninhabited, treeless and arid sandy pra
rie region—the terror even of the hardy pion
eers of the West. On this aoconnt, even if
Kansas were not admitted upon her original
boundaries, Congress would bs called upon
next year to give the geographically separated
pcoplo of Pike's Peak a State or Territorial
government to themselves.
80 with regard to Utah. It bout of the ques
tion to suppoee that if the Mormons numbered
a hundred thousand population they could be
allowed a State government to themselves; but
the newly discovered gold, silver and copper
mines on tbs western sids of that territory are
drawing to that section a population which, be
fore the expiration of two years, will demand
the erection in the Carson Valley country of a
new State.
Thus, before three years are over from this
day, we shall most likely have Ave new frat
States added to the Union, to wit: Kansas, N»>
braska, Jefferson (Pike's Peak,) Nevada (Car
son Valley) and Washington. There eaa be
very little reason, then, to doubt for a moment
that at the end of the next administration wa
shall stand twenty-two free Statss against six
teen slavs States.
Colt akd Potcttt.—Col. Bam Colt, of Hart
ford, Ct, the inventor.of the revolving Are
arms, wants to get his patent extended, on the
idea of'poverty.' How this'poor man' livsa
Is thus described by the Chicago Press. It re
mains to he seen whether the Colonel's poverty
dodge will humbug tbs patent managers at
Washington. The Prtu says s —"ColT Sam.
Colt, of Hartford, Conn., the inventor of re
volving (Ire-arms, livss in tbs most luxuriant
style of any man in New England. In his
grounds he Las a rang* of glass bouses more
than 1800 feet in length, where, besides flower
ing plants and shrubs, are suecessftilly culti
vated the winter through, the fruits of the trop
ics, and our orehatds as wsll as ths choicest of
our summer vegetables. A friend who lately
passed through them, tells of the strawberries,
pineapples, nectarines, peaches Ac.f which bt
saw ripening in plenty and perfection, and ia
token of the trutii of his marvslous tale, he laid
before our eyes a cucumber, eat at random
from the vine, which measured two bet lacking
one inch.
Btu. foe OtaAvmxo m Horst—The If,
Y. Kerning Pott says 0«n. Ashley of Ohio,
hu pren*ml a bill de*iRn*d to preveat a repe
titloo of the Ion* contest for8psakar, saeh m
marked the present mmIob.
Section firet of the bill provide* tor the Im
mediate election of a chairman bj ft plurality
vote. Section aecond preeeribee tbftt the only
bueinew of thU chairman ftnd the Houss shall
be the election of ft Spefther ftnd prohibits de
bftte Section third provides, in the treat of
no election of n Speaker by Wednesday of thft
Aral week, thftt ft plurality shall elect. Then
iollow the elections of the other offioere, who,
after fonr las&ctoal bftllots, shftll bs elected by
ft ptarallty. Ifsnch tltweu eoastitatioaally
be made by one Com tees to npply to the or
Kiiation of ths House ftad torn* of ths ablest
yen tn the eoaatry say U esa ft will esr
talftljr sftre ft vast deal of breath is thft fa tare,
whenever no oa* party shall hftre • elsftr ma
Jority la Dm Hooas.
CyThaaetiag Major of New Yock has
notified the Board af llil«m«i of thai ally,
that bo has isudrsd oAsial iafcnaatloa to
the sCwt that tha Oraat lastsrn stsaoahip
will mftka h«r fiist rojafs to that port.